RUSTON – Louisiana Tech raced out to an early lead to take set one before dropping the next three to fall to Liberty, 25-21, 21-25, 23-25, 20-25) on Friday night inside the Thomas Assembly Center.
 
Charlize Williams had three huge blocks to propel LA Tech (6-8, 0-1 CUSA) to a 9-3 lead quickly in the match. Jailen Hurley added two kills during that stretch to lead the Bulldog offense. Liberty (7-6, 1-0) stayed within striking distance, trading points until Tech's lead was 20-15. At that point, three Bulldog errors pulled the set within one. Hurley would end the threat with her third kill.
 
The second set started the same way the third set ended, with the teams going point-for-point. The Liberty offense found the holes in the Bulldog defense to take a six-point lead with a 6-0 run. The Lady Flames' lead stayed around that mark for the rest of the set before a small Tech run pulled it to within the final margin.
 
The match continued to be a back-and-forth battle. This time, the Bulldogs used a 7-1 run to claim a 10-4 lead. Six Tech errors helped Liberty go on an 8-2 run to grab the lead. The Bulldogs quickly reclaimed the lead, but the Lady Flames would not let it get larger than two and tied the set four times before taking the lead and closing out the set to take a 2-1 advantage.
 
Once again, the teams continued to play point-for-point, with Tech taking an early lead. A couple of small Liberty runs in the middle portion of the set gave them the lead. The teams continued to trade points, with the Bulldogs coming within a point before the Lady Flames finished the match.
 
Hurley led the Dogs with 12 kills and added five blocks. Giulia Bonifacio was second with eight and a team-high 16 digs. Williams had her second consecutive game with eight blocks with six kills. Meghan Scharpenberg had a double-double with 23 assists and 11 digs.
 
Kate Gammer led Liberty with 14 kills, followed by Paige Overcash with 10.
 
QUOTABLES
Head coach Amber McCray
 
"Tonight's loss is tough knowing that even with multiple players in multiple positions struggling, we were still right there and had chances in every set. Charlie did all she could to step up to lead us both offensively hitting a .500 and defensively in her blocking while Jailen provided a spark on offense as well, but they can't do it alone. I said in the preview this game would come down to whoever wins the serving and passing battle, and tonight we did not. I'm thankful for another chance to bounce back and be the team we know we can be tomorrow."
 
NOTABLES

• The Bulldogs had back-to-back games with 10 blocks for the first time since the end of the 2022 season.
• The double-double was the first of Scharpenberg's career
• The seven aces were the most against a Conference USA opponent since November 10, 2022 with the Bulldogs had nine against FIU.
• Tech dropped to 1-3 all-time against Liberty.

 
UP NEXT
The Bulldogs continue their two-game series with Liberty on Saturday starting a 1 p.m. CT. The match will be streamed live on ESPN+.
 
SUPPORT LA TECH ATHLETICS
Championships require championship resources.  Fans can make a direct impact on the success of LA Tech Athletics through LTAC, Aillet Society, T-Club, and Young Alumni program as well as the Bulldog Community Outreach which is the NIL collective that supports Bulldog and Lady Techster student-athletes.  Visit BuildTheLegacy.comtoday.  
 
BARK LOUDER
Our mission is to engage, develop, and advance the Louisiana Tech Athletics brand.  You can do that by spending time consuming our content and by investing your talents.  By barking louder with your time and talent, you can affect progress and brand advancement in a meaningful way.  Visit LATechSports.com/BarkLoudertoday.  You bark.  We bark.  Louder together.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For all the latest in Bulldog Volleyball, follow us on X (@LATechVB), Instagram (@LATechVB), and Facebook (LATechVolleyball).